for example, my packing list for the beach:

my cousin got married yesterday, and all weekend was spent helping my mom and aunt prepare.  yesterday morning, i walked into the kitchen, and on the counter was this:

yup, my mom is a crazy list-maker too.  it’s generational

(title song: from ‘side by side’ by sleeping at last)

I didn’t take many pictures of the wedding day brunch, but this is before:

And now, the ceremony!

The bride had a painter paint the wedding scene and gave it to her parents afterward:

The finished product:

Programs:

Probably my favorite detail:

Then we had a cocktail hour, and THEN we had dinner and dancing.  However, I forgot to take pictures at this point.  So, this is all I’ve got!

More things with my NAME on them:

It was such a fun weekend because we didn’t have to worry about anything.  All details were taken care of for us, making the whole thing stress free and fun.  I kept joking that the only problem I had was worrying if we were going too fast in the golf cart because I didn’t want my drink to spill   (it didn’t).

By the way, they planned the wedding and they did the invitations/programs/anything printed.  SO impressed!

With the beautiful bride:

I love things with my name on them…have I mentioned that?

Menu–best meal of the weekend:

After dinner, we went to the dancing part of the evening.

And look!  MORE FOOD!  Popcorn and chips!

Candy!

Cupcakes!

My two faves:

And tomorrow, finally!  The ceremony! (And then I’ll go back to my regularly scheduled blogging.  Which, let’s get serious, probably means not blogging so much)

As a reminder, the invitation looked like this:

When we got there, our names were embroidered on a little napkin?coaster? to indicate where we sat.  Please also note the embroidered napkins.

The menu:

The pretty, pretty food:

Flowers!  Sweet Peas! And my sister!

Mom and Me:

And…after we had an amazing sorbet dessert, they brought out cotton candy!  SO fun!

Tomorrow: Rehearsal Dinner and Wedding Day Brunch

Over the next few days I’m going to be sharing the details of this wedding, starting back in November when we got the Save the Dates (please note my mad photoshopping skillz).

The invites included the story of how the bride and groom met, an outline of the weekend’s events, and lodging information.  Of course, since we’re family, we got to stay on the property all weekend.  For relatively free, I might add…that might be rude to mention but I don’t care because it just made it THAT much more awesome for me.

Then in about February, we got the actual wedding invitation (these are the same, but I wanted to show the cool wrapper thing with my NAME ON IT. i love things with my name on them):

A few weeks later, the invitations for the various events of the weekend began to arrive:

We left Friday morning (my sister and I sleeping in the back seat like we’re 7 and 10)

and met the Father of the Bride (aka the Brother of my Step-dad) and the rest of the family before caravaning (i think i made up that word) up to Gorham’s Bluff. On the way there we find out we not only have our our house for our rather small family of 4, but we have 2 golf carts (one for my parents, one for sister+me) for transportation purposes.  Because, I mean, who wants to walk DOWN THE STREET in heels, right? I had never driven a golf cart before…and let me tell you, I’m not very good at it. Perhaps because I insist upon taking pictures/drinking/laughing my head off at the ridiculousity (i think i made up that word too) of it all while driving as fast as possible.

So, our house.

The one with the wrap around front porch and a balcony AND a screened in back porch?  Yeah, it was beautiful. See for yourself:

When we went inside, we were greeted with these lovely picnic baskets:

Containing maps, an official schedule (complete with the wedding planner’s phone number), and SNACKS!

Love the details somuch.

For tomorrow: The Bridesmaid’s Brunch!  Hint: cotton candy FTW!

A couple of years ago I found myself constantly asking God why life wasn’t turning out the way I thought it should. Plan B is about just that – how to deal when things are seemingly falling apart. Pete’s not stating that God has a Plan B. He is making the point that, while God only has a Plan A, we as humans often get to Plan Z before we stop planning in general and learn to rely on Him.

My life was a cycle:
It wasn’t supposed to be this way. I had it all planned out. Graduate from college, get a job that paid me $40,000 a year with an awesome laptop and a company car, meet someone, get married, live happily ever after.
It wasn’t supposed to be this way. Move to New York, have a fabulous life a la Sex and the City and/or Felicity, get a fantastic and high paying job, help plant a church, make lots of new friends, meet someone, get married, and live happily ever after.
It wasn’t supposed to be this way. Move home from New York for the summer, get a part time job, move to California, go to grad school, get a degree in Biblical Counseling, start a new adventure. Oh, and meet someone, get married, and live happily ever after. Of course.
And even recently: It wasn’t supposed to be this way. Start dating in March, engaged by December, get married next summer, and live happily ever after.
That’s not the case. Honestly, it’s not even close. [Sometimes you have to walk away from what's 'good' to pursue what's 'best'].

This book and sermon series couldn’t have come at a more perfect time for me. Something Pete said on Sunday kind of slapped me in the face (he does that sometimes):

The reason you are so broken is because you gave your love and devotion to your plans and dreams instead of to God.

There’s that word again– broken.  Brokenness = in need of rescue.  In need of someone to sew our hearts back together.  We need healing, and we need a healer.  I’ve written about this before…and I talk about this  rather often.  (One day I might write a book about it!)

How many times was I going to plan something my way only to realize it wasn’t going to go my way?
How many times was I going to look at my circumstances and say, “it wasn’t supposed to be this way”?
How long before I realize that I am broken, I am not in control, and Jesus is my everything?

In his book Everything Belongs, Richard Rohr says:

I believe that faith might be precisely that ability to trust the river, to trust the flow and the lover.  It is a process that we don’t have to change, coerce, or improve.  We need to allow it to flow.  That takes immense confidence in God, especially when we’re hurting.

Especially when we’re hurting…yes.  Learning that now, this very week.  This very moment, even, as I prepare to go help clean out homes of those who have lost everything in the Nashville flood.  We were not made to live on the mountaintop, but praise in the valleys.

The end of Plan B says it well:

…trust that one day faith will win over doubt, that light will win over darkness, that love will win over hate, and that all things will one day be redeemed. I’m asking you, right in the middle of your Plan B pain [your plan B, NOT God's], to trust the process that is going on in your life. It won’t be finished for a while, but it has begun. God will finish what he started.

Pete’s book is awesome, and I highly recommend.  Especially if you like books that slap you across the face.  You should also download the sermon series “Shattered Dreams” that goes along with the book:

me, lately:

• it is very rare that i find an artist or musician who absolutely blows me away at first listen: anathallo, jump, little children, something corporate, aireline.  but this girl…THIS girl is incredible. check her out if you get a chance.
• i haven’t run in two weeks.  i have had zero motivation….and no energy.  i need to sign up for another 5k to keep me on track!!
• i saw muse on Monday night…it was pretty awesome.  Since I am 5’4″, I couldn’t see much since we were on the floor.  However, I got to go with some fun folks who made me laugh a lot, and that’s always a good time.
• If you live in or near Nashville, please go eat at Nuvo Burrito.  I promise, so worth it.
• I have been completely obsessed with Jon and Kate + 8.  Like, have watched the majority of the 5 seasons recently.  Wow, just wow.
• And speaking of TV, I caught back up on Grey’s Anatomy.  I quit after the first or second episode this season (mostly because I didn’t have a TV) and decided to catch up.  I’m glad I did.  As one friend says, Grey’s fits like a comfortably worn-in pair of jeans.
• I find myself listening to Taylor Swift over and over these days.  What is it about her?  Someone enlighten me.  If I did a “can’t stop listening” blog post right now, it would pretty  much be her songs.  And Crystal Thomas.  And maybe a little Paramore, Passion Pit, and Phoenix.  Ok, maybe I should do a new post on that.
• it’s almost spring (tomorrow!) and i got through this winter without taking anti-depressants.  I credit tons of Vitamin D, exercise, more time with Jesus, and using progesterone to balance my hormones (which is a whole nother post).  It’s the first time in three years I haven’t been on them…yay!
• Finally, three movies I have seen lately: Alice in Wonderland (blah), Remember Me (even more blah), and Up in the Air (awesome!).  Maybe I should limit my movie watching to Academy Nominated movies from now on?

Let’s call it ‘participated’ instead of ‘ran,’ shall we?

I didn’t sleep much the night before – typical, really.  Plus I wasn’t in my own bed, plus I was a bit anxious. Plus I made the bad decision to see Alice in Wonderland in 3D the night before instead of getting enough rest (I wasn’t a fan…it could have been better). Regardless, last Saturday I woke up entirely too early, hit up starbucks, and headed to Gaylord/Opry Mills for the Springer Mountain Healthy 5k Run and Walk.

My reactions, in list form:
+ I really don’t like country music, but that’s what was blaring the whole time. Thank God for my iPod where i could listen to Taylor Swift….wait….
+ Running outside realllllyy hurts my calves/shins [side note: my calves.hurt.when i run. the only thing that helps is running on a treadmill. but you can't participate in a 5k on a treadmill. i have done hours and hours of research to figure out what the heck is wrong...shin splints? do i need to stretch more? walk longer? shoe inserts? strengthening exercises? i think maybe a combination of the above will help...who knows]
+ My SIL ran it in like 32 minutes or something crazy….I’m so proud of her!
+ I finished. In under an hour. That was the goal, and I’m glad I did it so I know what to expect next time….
+ and, next time: soon. More running, more training, and more calf stretches! Goal: to RUN a 5k!

1. Run a 5k (spring), a 10k (summerish) and a ½ marathon (fall)
i just registered for my first 5k this afternoon….though i don’t feel anywhere NEAR prepared, i bit the bullet and did it (mostly because sara texted me asked me to run it with her, and little did she know that i was already researching various 5ks RIGHT AT THAT MOMENT. i took it as a sign!) i might be walking some of that 5k, and i’m okay with that. but if so, i have to do another one

2. Mentor two women for at least six months
i’m in the process of mentoring #1. i don’t want to mentor two women at the same time, so #2 will begin in June.

6. Send birthday cards to 12 people (one/month)
fail. already. i forgot in January. sooo one month i’ll have to send two!

7. Send one card per week to a friend
fail. will start this week! and send 2 some weeks to make up for the 4 i’ve missed.

10. Go to five concerts of bands i LOVE
i bought tickets for MUSE (3/15) and owl city (4/19). also plan to buy tickets to Copeland (4/5) and needtobreathe (3/26)….just need one more. (oh, just kidding, cause i’m weird and purchased tickets to a show in a city in which i no longer reside….more details on that later. still need a plane ticket, so we’ll see if that happens!)

13. Compile the soundtrack of my life (so far)
i have a whole stickie note on my computer dedicated to this task. so far i have three songs.

17. Spend a weekend in the mountains/at the lake
Feb 12-14!

21. Blog once a week (at least)
6 posts so far this year, and we’re on week 5. so i’m on track!

26. Read five books based on friends’ recommendations
1. The Help (based on Jamie’s recommendation…but also the first book my book club chose to read)

27. See all ten Academy Award nominees for Best Picture
1. Avatar
2. The Blind Side
3. District 9
4. An Education
5. The Hurt Locker
6. Inglourious Basterds
7. Precious
8. A Serious Man
9. Up
10. Up in the Air

28. Make it a habit to take my vitamins
I did pretty well the first two weeks, but not so much any more….i’ll start again next week.

I’ll update again on March 3!

And you are pouring out your life. The words are so hard for you to say. I look you in the eye to make sure you know I’m not scared.  My words are few.  I want you to know I understand.  I want you to keep talking.  Keep pouring.

Our heads are leaned back, looking up as though we’re searching the stars for some answers.  (They don’t exist.  That’s okay).  You place your hand next to mine on the glass. It’s much bigger than mine. You are alive. Breathing. Warm. This is really happening.

(title song: from ‘white days’ by the juliana theory)